The Metauro is a river in the

Marche Marche ( , ) is one of the twenty regions of Italy. In English, the region is sometimes referred to as The Marches ( ). The region is located in the central area of the country, bordered by Emilia-Romagna and the republic of San Marino to the ...

region of central

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. It rises in the

Apennine Mountains The Apennines or Apennine Mountains (; grc-gre, links=no, Ἀπέννινα ὄρη or Ἀπέννινον ὄρος; la, Appenninus or – a singular with plural meaning;''Apenninus'' (Greek or ) has the form of an adjective, which wou ...

and runs east for or if the Meta is included as its uppermost reach. The name of the river in

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...

is ''Metaurus'' or ''Mataurus.'' In

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...

, the name of the river is ''Métauros'', '' Μέταυρος'' which stems simply from the union of the two torrents: Meta, running from the Apennine pass Bocca Trabaria, at an elevation of , and Auro, flowing from Monte Maggiore, at an elevation of . The source of the river is located near

Monte dei Frati Monte dei Frati is a mountain in the Italian province of Arezzo near the border with Pesaro e Urbino and Perugia. Geography The mountain is in height. It is on the border between the Umbrian Apennines and the Umbrian-Marchean Apennines. I ...

in the border region between the provinces of Pesaro e Urbino,

Arezzo Arezzo ( , , ) , also ; ett, 𐌀𐌓𐌉𐌕𐌉𐌌, Aritim. is a city and ''comune'' in Italy and the capital of the Province of Arezzo, province of the same name located in Tuscany. Arezzo is about southeast of Florence at an elevation o ...

and

Perugia Perugia (, , ; lat, Perusia) is the capital city of Umbria in central Italy, crossed by the River Tiber, and of the province of Perugia. The city is located about north of Rome and southeast of Florence. It covers a high hilltop and par ...

. It flows east through Pesaro e Urbino near Mercatello sul Metauro,

Sant'Angelo in Vado Sant'Angelo in Vado is a ''comune'' (municipality), site of Ancient Tifernum Metaurense and former bishopric in the Province of Pesaro e Urbino in the central Italian Adriatic region Marche. Geography It is located about west of Ancona and ab ...

(where the river forms the Cascata del Sasso, "Waterfall of the Stone"),

Urbania Urbania is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Pesaro e Urbino in the Italian region of Marche, located about west of Ancona and about southwest of Pesaro, next to the river Metauro. Urbania borders the following municipalities: ...

Fermignano Fermignano ( Romagnol: ''Fermignèn'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Pesaro e Urbino in the Italian region Marche, located about west of Ancona and about southwest of Pesaro. Renaissance architect Donato Bramante was born her ...

Fossombrone Fossombrone is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Pesaro e Urbino, Marche, central Italy. History The ancient Roman colony of ''Forum Sempronii'' took its name from Gaius Sempronius Gracchus. Near the Furlo Pass, during the Gothic War, wa ...

(in whose territory it receives the waters of the Candigliano), and, after flowing into a tight valley, the

Gola del Furlo 240px, Entrance of the Roman tunnel. The Furlo Pass (Italian: ''Gola del Furlo'' or ''Passo del Furlo'') is a gorge on the ancient Roman road Via Flaminia in the Marche region of central Italy, where it passes near the Candigliano river, a tribu ...

Montemaggiore al Metauro Montemaggiore al Metauro is a ''frazione'' of the ''comune'' of Colli al Metauro, Marche, central Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in th ...

, from which it starts to flow in a plain area. The river flows northeast near Calcinelli, Saltara, Lucrezia,

Cartoceto Cartoceto is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Pesaro e Urbino in the Italian region Marche, located about northwest of Ancona and about south of Pesaro. Twin towns * Hügelsheim Hügelsheim (Low Alemannic: ''Heilze'' or ''Helse ...

and Cuccurano before flowing into the

Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) ...

near

Fano Fano is a town and ''comune'' of the province of Pesaro and Urbino in the Marche region of Italy. It is a beach resort southeast of Pesaro, located where the ''Via Flaminia'' reaches the Adriatic Sea. It is the third city in the region by popul ...

Battles

Two battles were fought on the banks of Metauro in ancient times. *in 207 BC,

Hasdrubal Barca Hasdrubal Barca (245– 22June 207BC), a latinization of ʿAzrubaʿal ( xpu, 𐤏𐤆𐤓𐤁𐤏𐤋 ) son of Hamilcar Barca, was a Carthaginian general in the Second Punic War. He was the brother of Hannibal and Mago Barca. Youth and Iberi ...

, while marching to the aid of

Hannibal Hannibal (; xpu, 𐤇𐤍𐤁𐤏𐤋, ''Ḥannibaʿl''; 247 – between 183 and 181 BC) was a Carthaginian general and statesman who commanded the forces of Carthage in their battle against the Roman Republic during the Second Pu ...

, was defeated and slain by a Roman army led by the

consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states th ...

Marcus Livius Salinator Marcus Livius Salinator (254 – c. 191 BC) was a Roman general and politician who fought in the Second Punic War, most notably during the Battle of the Metaurus. Born in 254 BC, Livius was elected consul of the Roman Republic with Lucius Aemiliu ...

and

Gaius Claudius Nero Gaius Claudius Nero (c. 247 BCc. 189 BC) was a Roman general active during the Second Punic War against the invading Carthaginian force, led by Hannibal Barca. During a military career that began as legate in 214 BC, he was propraetor in 211 ...

. The

Battle of the Metaurus The Battle of the Metaurus was a pivotal battle in the Second Punic War between Rome and Carthage, fought in 207 BC near the Metauro River in Italy. The Carthaginians were led by Hasdrubal Barca, brother of Hannibal, who was to have brought siege ...

was the decisive battle of the

Second Punic War The Second Punic War (218 to 201 BC) was the second of three wars fought between Carthage and Rome, the two main powers of the western Mediterranean in the 3rd century BC. For 17 years the two states struggled for supremacy, primarily in Ital ...

. The exact site of the battle is uncertain; tradition places it between

and the Furlo, but it is probable that it occurred nearer the Adriatic coast; *in 271, Roman Emperor

Aurelian Aurelian ( la, Lucius Domitius Aurelianus; 9 September 214 October 275) was a Roman emperor, who reigned during the Crisis of the Third Century, from 270 to 275. As emperor, he won an unprecedented series of military victories which reunited ...

defeated in the

Battle of Fano The Battle of Fano, also known as the Battle of Fanum Fortunae,Michael Grant, The History of Rome, p. 285 was fought in 271 between the Roman Empire and the Juthungi. The Romans, led by Emperor Aurelian, were victorious. Background Aurelian ...

, fought near the river, the

Alamanni The Alemanni or Alamanni, were a confederation of Germanic tribes * * * on the Upper Rhine River. First mentioned by Cassius Dio in the context of the campaign of Caracalla of 213, the Alemanni captured the in 260, and later expanded into pr ...

, who had invaded the northern part of

Italia Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

the previous year.

References

;Attribution *

External links

La Valle del Metauro
Database about natural and human aspects of the valley
Il Giornale del Metauro on-line news from the valley towns and villages
{{Authority control Rivers of the Province of Pesaro and Urbino Rivers of Italy Adriatic Italian coast basins